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PythonApplication

CVE-2008-5983

MEDIUM · 6.9 CVSS v2.0 Published 2009-01-28
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.6.6 / 3.1.3 or later.
See remediation →
74/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
Untrusted search path vulnerability in the PySys_SetArgv API function in Python 2.6 and earlier, and possibly later versions, prepends an empty string to sys.path when the argv[0] argument does not contain a path separator, which might allow local users to execute arbitrary code via a Trojan horse Python file in the current working directory.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Python's PySys_SetArgv API prepends an empty string to sys.path when argv[0] lacks a path separator, causing Python to search the current working directory for modules before other paths. This allows local attackers to place malicious Python files with common module names in directories where victims run Python, achieving arbitrary code execution.

MitigationAvoid running Python from directories containing untrusted files; always invoke Python scripts with full paths (e.g., ./script.py instead of python script.py) and ensure the current working directory is not at the beginning of sys.path.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
PythonApplication
Affected:< 2.6.6>= 3.1.0, < 3.1.3
FedoraOperating system
Affected:= 13
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 8.04= 10.04= 11.04= 11.10

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed Python version
    Run 'python --version' or 'python3 --version' and note the exact version number
    Affected if Version is less than 2.6.6, or between 3.1.0 and 3.1.3 (inclusive)
  2. Inspect sys.path contents
    Run 'python -c "import sys; print(sys.path)"' and examine the output
    Affected if An empty string ('') appears as the first element in the list, indicating the current working directory is searched first
  3. Determine how Python is invoked
    Check how Python is launched in your workflow - whether using bare 'python script.py' or with path prefix like './script.py'
    Affected if Python is invoked without a path separator in argv[0] (e.g., 'python script.py' rather than './script.py' or '/path/to/python script.py')
  4. Audit current working directory for suspicious modules
    List all .py files in the directory where Python is executed: 'ls -la *.py' - look for files with common module names like os.py, sys.py, socket.py, json.py, etc.
    Affected if Any file matches a standard library module name and resides in a directory where Python is run

You are affected if you run a vulnerable Python version, invoke Python without a path separator in argv[0], and your current working directory contains Python files with names matching common modules.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.6.6 / 3.1.3 or later
Fixed in 2.6.63.1.3
Interim mitigation

Avoid running Python from directories containing untrusted files; always invoke Python scripts with full paths (e.g., ./script.py instead of python script.py) and ensure the current working directory is not at the beginning of sys.path.

Fix this in Python Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,060
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-5983 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data